The first day at The Masters started with a scene we never will tire
of, the ceremonial opening tee shots by Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player with The Black Knight edging The Golden Bear for bragging rights. After the holders of nine Masters titles(not ten as Fred Ridley mistakenly quoted) cleared out a ghost of Masters Past appeared.
2000 Masters Champ Vijay Singh was off and running quickly with three birdies in four holes and atop the leaderboard at -3. Really??? He later cooled and finished T16 at -1. But that’s what makes this tournament so special, experience pays big dividends on Augusta National, more so than any course they play.
There were plenty of Heroes on Day One and believe it or not, few Zeros.
First the Zeros. Poor Sergio Garcia. He had been flying high for the past year as he wore that green jacket everywhere. He got married to his beautiful wife this past year, had a child who he named Azalea in honor of The Masters and has been smiling since he landed in Augusta.
Then he hits the fifteenth hole and has the most visible Tin Cup moment since Roy McAvoy rinsed it at the U. S. Open. Five balls in the water, and most of them looked like good shots but too much spin on these curling sheet slick greens and shaved banks with no rough equal disaster. Tough break for Sergio but as he knows very well…life goes on.
What about Kiradech Aphibarnrat, the 30th ranked golfer in the world shooting 40 on the front nine with four bogeys then matching those bogeys on the back with a lone birdie? He ends up wit an ugly 79 tied for 82nd, ouch.
John Rahm has to be disappointed with his three over 75 today. He has so much power and potential T55 was not what he expected. He was even par on the front but two bogeys and a water ball double on sixteen left him with an unimpressive 39 on the back nine.
Now for the good stuff and The Heroes. Props to amateur Doug Ghim for leading all the am’s with an even par 72 which included eagles at thirteen and eighteen, yes eighteen. He holed his 179 yard approach. Good stuff.
As wonderful as the Par 3 Tournament was on Wednesday with Jack’s grand-kid holing out and Ol’ Tom Watson winning it was as scary a scene as you’ll see on a golf course that doesn’t involve a bunch of drunks and a golf cart. Tony Finau dislocated his left ankle as he celebrated his hole in one and then he actually popped it back in right there. He got the all clear to play, but it was indeed dislocated and he did say quite painful but he tees it up and was leading for a good portion of the day. His 68 left him tied for second, two back and has to be the feel good story of the day.
Props to the big names on top of the leaderboard who gave us great moments today. Matt Kuchar, Henrik Stenson, Patrick Reed and Rory McIlroy are T4 along with four others including Haotong Li from China who’s competing in his first Masters and probably being watched by a billion people.
Phil Mickelson was his typical Phil The Thrill self, six birdies, four bogeys and a few excruciating putts that just wouldn’t fall. As it is two under and T11 is very acceptable.
Tiger Woods says he happy to be out on the course instead of just flying in for the Champions Dinner. And a one over 73 isn’t that bad for someone coming back from their fourth back surgery. But he failed to birdie any par fives all day and that won’t get it done at Augusta.
So Freddy Couples just shows up at Augusta each year to show off. He’s played one tournament on the PGA Champions this year due to an ailing back but he goes out and shoots even par. Cool Freddy, very cool.
There are horses for courses as they say and Jordan Spieth is Secretariat on Augusta National. He opens with a front nine 34 with an eagle on eight, strings together five birds from thirteen through seventeen and he even makes a good bogey on eighteen after he pulls his drive left of left. And finishes two clear of the field. This kid just thrives on this course. From 2014 to 2017 he’s finished T2, Won, T2 and T11. He has held the lead in nine of his seventeen rounds at Augusta National. This is some serious stuff. Rory and Phil and Kuch and Henrik and the boys better hope he doesn’t run away and hide like he did in ’15.
And last but not least, cheers to the coverage on Masters.com Being able to watch Amen Corner and fifteen and sixteen all day is a Masters Fan’s dream come true. If you’re not watching that coverage you’re missing out in a major way.
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